Sunrise, Sunset
by Estrella00
Summary: The Battle of the Labyrinth is over, and now Marie Grendel must come to a terrible realization, Lee Fletcher is dead. Now she traces their lives together, while preparing for his funeral at Camp Half Blood. Can she truly live her life without him? R&R!
1. Promises

(Ok, here's a little preface to my half-blood character Marie Grendel:

She is sixteen, dark haired and olive skinned. She is a daughter of Ares, but you couldn't tell if you met her on the street. She is peace loving, and just wants to be ok. She also once upset Aphrodite in a big way, more of that to come later. She came to Camp Half Blood at age eleven and became a full time camper after her mom decided to go to California to see if she could make it in show biz, she hasn't seen her since. Marie was claimed by Ares the first (and only) time she ever hit someone, Silena Beauregard, in her first year at Camp. Her dad has commented more than once on how she is an embarrassment to him and all he stands for, but she knows she is doing what is right in the end. Chiron appointed her Head Counselor, which was a surprise to everyone, including her. In her third year Hayden Marsello, a nine-year-old son of Demeter, came and she took him under her wing, although he was not in her cabin. He was killed in a monster attack the same year. She and Lee Fletcher have always been friends, since they both arrived at camp, although their love story is not very normal. I guess you're just gonna have to see what happens to her!)

_They lay on the soft grass of the open strawberry fields, looking at the constellations, Orion, the hunter, Cassiopeia, the Queen, and the new one, Zoe the Huntress. Lee turned his head to Marie, his blond hair still shining vaguely in the midnight light, he took her hand,_

"_What are you thinking?" Marie didn't want to answer, didn't want to let him know._

"_How beautiful the sky is…"_

"_You're thinking something else too." Damn, he knew her well._

"_I just, Lee, I'm scared about tomorrow." _

"_Why?" _

_She sat up, "Lee, its Kronos, and Luke, and all the monsters we've read about in books. You know the camp's army isn't enough…I can't…" she took a deep breath, "I can't let anyone die, there's already been enough death, after Hayden…" Lee sat up,_

"_Hayden is dead, we can't change that, but you can't save millions Marie, all you can do is hope for the best."_

"_But if something were to happen to Chiron, or my cabin, or you—" He kissed her, long, and relaxing, like the sun rising after a long and dark night._

"_Nothing is going to happen to Chiron, or your cabin," he drew her close and whispered in her ear, "or me." _

_She wanted to believe him; she really did, but the words of Aphrodite just kept resonating in her mind, 'I will make love as hard for you as it is for Calypso!' Marie pulled away,_

"_But Aphrodite said—" she realized her mistake, Lee stiffened, _

"_The gods aren't always right." He said stonily, but drew her close again, cupping her chin in his hands, "And you know Aphrodite is extremely jealous."_

"_Shh," Marie hushed, "If she hears you—" He stood, yelling at the sky,_

"_Then what? Its true, and she knows it." He saw Marie's tears, and his face changed from the brave hero he was to another of his best attributes, worried boyfriend, he knelt next to her,_

"_Is a daughter of Ares crying? I thought you were supposed to be tough." He punched her lightly on the shoulder and she lifted her head, a smile creeping across her lips, "You better run Apollo boy!" she chased him through the fields before tackling him to the ground and kissing him, but the tears still came,_

"_I'm not going anywhere." He whispered, and she just kissed him harder._

"Marie?" Clarisse poked her half-sister and bunk bed buddy in the face, staring perplexedly.

"What's going on?" Marie jumped into consciousness.

"Well, you were just, just talking in your sleep again, but Chiron said to come get you, the ceremony's gonna be soon." Clarisse walked out, re-securing her blood-red bandana. _She isn't so bad_, Marie thought,_ just rough around the edges._

She got up and jumped over various pieces of armor and discarded wrappers, she would have to talk to Clarisse about getting the place cleaned up, although _she _was head counselor, and should've been there for her half brothers and sisters. She brushed her dark, curly hair and washed her face, ignoring the 'You're Ugly Anyway' sign scrawled across the mirror in red lipstick. She headed out of the cabin, wether she was ready to face the camp or not.


	2. The First Summer

Chapter 2

Marie walked outside the cabin. To her surprise things seemed almost, normal. The sky was just beginning to turn its daily arc into a beautiful sunset and the temperature remained as it always had, perfect. The only peculiarity was the emptiness. On a normal day, dryads and satyrs would be running around, playing tricks on unruly campers and exchanging contraband sodas. But it was silent. Chiron had ordered everyone to report to their daily activities, and the remaining satyrs and dryads were to help in the Big House, where the wounded still needed tending. Marie scanned the cabins, her gaze lingering on Aphrodite. She reached to clutch the special charm on her camp necklace, only to remember it was gone, just like the boy who gave it to her.

_"And who are you?" the gorgeous blonde eleven-year-old asked, her tone hinting a bit of malice as she stared down at dark, awkward, eleven-year-old Marie._

"_Um…Marie, Marie Grendel." She regretted having walked up to the beautiful girls under the oak tree making daisy chains, but she took a deep breath and stuck out her nail bitten hand,_

"_I'm new." The blonde chuckled, waving the handshake away,_

"_Silena Beauregard, daughter of Aphrodite, and Alexander Beauregard," she referred to the wealthy actor, who was most famed for making People's Sexiest Man Alive list five years in a row, "I've never seen you before."_

"_I came last winter, this is my first summer."_

"_Oh, yeah, there's always those few with the trailer-trash mortal parent." She looked over at her gang of equally beautiful half-sisters, who snickered into their daisy chains._

"_My mom isn't trailer trash. She just—"_

"_Just what? Went back to the tar pit she crawled out from?"_

"_No, she went to be an actress in Holly—"_

"_Well, if she looks anything like you, she'll never make it!" Marie's eyes blurred and she mumbled,_

"_I just wanted to make daisy chains…"_

"_Well then, we have a problem," Silena's eyes flashed and the snickers of her clique buzzed in Marie's ears. Silena moved close to Marie's ear,_

"_Your hands are too ugly." _

_In that moment, a manic rage hit Marie in the chest, unlike anything she'd ever felt before. Without understanding what she was doing, Marie slammed her fist into Silena's face, causing both the girls to go flying apart. A wail rose up and kids began to gather. But they weren't staring at Silena, instead, Marie, who was surrounded by a ring of fire, the sounds of a motorcycle faintly heard in the distance. Chiron galloped over, in time to hear the last rev of the motorcycle before the entire illusion evaporated. _

"_Marie, are you alright?" He knew her name?_

"_I'm fine," she replied, still slightly disconcerted, "Um, what was that?"_

"_By the looks of it, it was from you father. Ares had claimed you as his daughter." _The War God? _Marie thought, _My dad? _Chiron surveyed the situation, before whispering to her, _

"_If I were you I'd leave the area, Aphrodite will be here soon enough. Lee!" he yelled to a boy Marie's age, with golden hair and a never-needs-braces smile, "Would you please accompany Ms. Grendel?" he galloped towards Silena, who was still bawling. _

"_Lee!" she whined at the boy, "Will you help me up?" he pretended not to hear her and hoisted Marie up with considerable ease, _

"_Hi, I'm Lee Fletcher." His blue eyes were deep, god-like…_Well duh! _Marie thought. A sickly sweet perfume began to pervade the area under the tree and everything seemed to gain a rosy hue. _

"_We better go, Aphrodite's almost here." Lee tugged on her arm and began to run. They ran away from the tree, down the hill, past the cabins, and the stables, and Marie began to cry, her tears whipped behind her as she followed Lee through the forest, only stopping to rest at Zeus' Fist. Then Lee noticed her tears,_

"_Are you o.k?" he gave her a concerned look._

"_I-I-I," Marie's sobs came faster, "I didn't want to hurt her!" Lee looked confused,_

"_A child of Ares? Crying?"_

"_Doesn't that happen?" Marie asked, wide-eyed._

"_Um, no." Lee replied, cracking a slight smile._

"_Well, don't children of—of—of whoever cry?" she fired back, before groaning at her lameness. Lee just laughed,_

"_Children of Apollo don't cry, we strike an attractive pose and look wistful." He demonstrated and Marie laughed, wiping away her tears. _

"_You know? I think what you did to Silena back there was really brave, I've been wanting to do that for 'bout a year. Why did you do it?"_

"_She called my mom trailer-trash, just because she couldn't take care of me while she was in Hollywood. She's gonna be an actress." Marie was opening up more than she had to anyone else in her half-year at camp._

"_Its ok, my mom had to leave me alone too. She's in Africa building a hospital." They spent a long time talking, Marie felt safe, even though the forest was growing darker and darker, and the fireflies were coming out. _

"_Its so peaceful here. I love fireflies." Marie sighed, watching the little bursts of light._

"_I know! They're like—" but he was cut off by the dinner bell. He jumped up, but Marie just kept staring at the fireflies,_

"_Aren't you coming?"_

"_Yeah, in a minute. I'll give you a head start." She smiled._

"_I'll talk to you later." He smiled back and headed off. Marie huffed and heard a rustle in the bushes. She jumped, ready to fight, only if she was a puny eleven-year-old. But only a few dryads emerged, giggling hysterically and rushing to engulf her in a hug. _

"_We heard everything!" they squealed._

"_Um, hello?" Marie responded._

"_Oh! How impolite, we're quite sorry. I am Juniper." _

"_Thyme!"_

"_Sage!"_

"_You guys are destined for each other!" Juniper giggled._

"_Who?"_

"_You and Lee." The three said in unison, giving her the 'duh' look. _

"_You think?" Marie asked, looking into the distance._

"_We're _certain_."_


	3. Dance With Me?

Marie walked slowly from the cabin door, deciding to take the long way. She smiled at the memory of her first encounter with Juniper, Thyme, and Sage, who had become her confidantes, her friends. Her mood began to improve until she reached the outside of the half-oval of cabins, where the wood clearing still sat, as if untouched by time. The stone bench, as smooth as when she was twelve, and the moss covered fountain, depicting scenes from the tale of Cupid and Psyche, still dribbling water. Maybe taking the long way wasn't the best idea.

***

_Marie loved winter, for many a reason, long talks near the fire with Lee, camp snowball fights, field trips into the city, and most of all, no mention of Silena Beauregard, although she missed her new friends Juniper, Thyme, and Sage dearly. They slept during the winter, and after one disastrous attempt to wake them up, involving many thorn pricks and temporary severe allergies, she decided to just wait till spring to try to converse with them again. Even though she badly needed their advice, or just to talk to them. Marie and her siblings didn't get along well, as she always comforted the loser of their late night cabin brawls and refused to participate herself. But in Lee, she found solace, another bright mind to converse with, even better, someone to play chess with during rec time._

"_Check mate!" Marie hopped from her seat, pumping her fists into the air. Other kids looked at her, puzzled over why someone would show so much excitement over _chess_! _

"_You caught me off guard!" Lee protested, before playfully punching her arm. They engaged in a mini-battle, not noticing the swarms of half bloods flocking towards the bulletin board, tacked with old reminders, advertisements for various goods (mythical and not), and the newest, a sheet of creamy paper only used for announcements direct from Mount Olympus. The writing was curly, fancy, the kind written only on important invitations:_

_The Gods of Mount Olympus Invite You To_

_A Winter Ball_

_In Honor of the Solstice_

_December the Twentieth _

"_What?" The newer campers, Marie among them, wondered. Lee smiled nervously at the poster,_

"_The Gods host a dance every Winter Solstice, kind of a tradition, dresses, nice shirts, a little tent heated to a perfect 80 degree temp. It's all very fancy and overrated." He did a little pantomime and Marie chuckled. _

"_So, we're out then?" _

"_Negative, attendance is required." They sighed in tandem as the bell rang through the rec room. Everyone poured out, buzzing about the ball, and Marie and Lee were lost in the crowd._

_That night, Marie lay on her small cot, (she had graduated from the floor a few months back) thinking about the dance. _Maybe we could go as friends, you know, prevent the awkwardness of finding dates, _which had been the main topic of discussion in the cabin that night. With that happy thought, she drifted off to sleep._

_***_

_Marie awoke next morning to the clanging of the bell, signaling all campers to get their booties over to the Dining Hall. _

"_What's going on?" She asked Lee when they began their ritualistic walk to breakfast._

"_Oh, you'll see." Lee sighed contently, enjoying his little game. They arrived at the dining hall where the tables had to disappear, requiring the campers to stand and mingle with other cabins. Marie kept her hands crossed trying not to bump into anyone. Chiron and Mr. D took the platform at the far end of the room. _

"_Good morning campers," Chiron bowed his head in early morning cheer, met with grumbles, "As you can see, we have removed the tables today for the purpose of outfitting you for the Winter Ball in outfits deemed appropriate by your immortal parent," The girls in the room tittered excitedly, "However, this means we will be bypassing breakfast." Marie and the boys moaned. She turned to Lee,_

"_So they're not feeding us AND making us shop for evening wear? Kill me now!" Lee smiled,_

"_Actually the boys just have to wear a shirt and tie from our cabin, we go to activities now. Later!" He let himself fall into the traffic out of the dining hall, waving at Marie. She stuck out her tongue at him. While Chiron droned on instructions: Only take clothes from your parent's section, blah blah blah…..The door flew open and revealed none other than Silena Beauregard, seated daintily on a cart of luggage._

"_You've got to be kidding me." Marie muttered at the heavens. _

"_Silena, next time may I suggest a more discreet entrance." Chiron shot a look of disapproval. _

"_And now without further ado, let this fiasco commence!" Mr. D made a half-hearted gesture with his hands and the room was suddenly filled to the brim with a rainbow of lace, chiffon, and silk. In the moment Marie took to gawk, the demi-goddesses attacked the piles as if it were the Coca-Cola the satyrs occasionally snuck in! She sauntered up to the piles, picking through red dresses without much interest. _

"_And then I said, 'Of course I'll have a date there Daddy', and he said…" Marie could recognize the whiney little voice anywhere, a constant buzz just at her level of consciousness, "Oh, Marie! I didn't see you there." Marie turned looking into the flawlessly tanned face of Silena, "How have you been gorgeous?" her words dripped mockery. Marie turned away,_

"_Same as always Silena, same as always." _

"_Delysia and I were just discussing our intended beaus. Do you have a date yet?"_

"_I'm probably just going with a friend." Silena gasped,_

"_Oh no, that will NEVER do. How old are we, four? An event such as this practically REQUIRES an escort," She looked Marie straight on," I'd work on that if I were you." _

"_Go to Tartarus." Marie grabbed a dress and bolted from the Dining Hall._

_***_

_Marie was loath to admit it, but Silena's words bothered her. It wasn't so much she was worried about Silena herself, no, Lee DESPISED Silena, it was the…coupling part. "Date" entailed something Marie felt awkward discussing, something she wanted to keep from interfering with her friendship. Nonetheless, her demons got the better of her during their weekly game of chess, just a few days before the dance,_

"_So, do you wanna just go to this thing as friends, we can bypass the awkwardness!" Marie laughed. They had traded stories all week of awkward propositions brought forth to their brothers and sisters. Lee smiled reassuringly,_

"_I'd love to—"_

"_Great!" Marie was secretly relieved," So we can meet at the fountain around eight? Ditch all the awkward beginning songs—"_

"_But my dad already arranged something." Lee looked pained and Marie's thumping heart stopped abruptly,_

"_What?"_

"_My dad, he arranged for me to go with Silena."_

"_Well, can't you say no…?"_

"_It doesn't work like that Marie—"_

"_What do you mean? He should know you can't stand her—"_

"_Marie!" Lee hardly ever raised his voice, "I have to, ok? Don't make it any harder." His words stung, making her feel like a child. Their game was unfinished, but she stood up,_

"_Have fun. Really, make Daddy happy." And she walked away, hoping no one would see a daughter of Ares cry. _

_***_

_Marie felt stupid, sitting on the bench by Cupid & Psyche's fountain in her red dress, which had fit her perfectly! Even Darius, Ares head counselor and the "scariest warrior ever seen in Capture the Flag", had nodded his head and smiled when he saw her. It was almost eight and the sky was dark, but the clearing was lit by small fireflies, keeping her safe and warm. Part of her hoped Lee would come galloping into the clearing, sweeping her into his arms, and affirming her secret wish. But the other part hoped he wouldn't come, letting her dream burn out, and giving her no more cause to hurt. Marie felt time pass, her heart sinking with it. Then, at a rustling of leaves, Marie leapt to her feet. She may have been in an evening gown but that would NOT keep her from defending herself! _

"_Show yourself!" She hissed at the silhouette coming through the shadows._

"_Easy, easy! Its me!" The voice was so wonderfully familiar!_

"_L-Lee?" Marie let herself relax and fall back onto the bench. _

"_Here I am!" He held out his arms as if to say 'Surprise!'._

"_I suppose you have to get back to Silena, now you've checked on me." Marie practically spat, surprising herself with her own fury._

"_No." Marie turned to him._

"_What about Apollo?"_

"_He should understand better than anyone…wanting to spend the night with a smart, beautiful friend." The first few notes of an Irvin Berlin song, slowed to a ballad, floated out to them. The silence was thick. _

"_Would you like to dance?" Lee held out his hand. Marie shook her head,_

"_I can't dance."_

"_Oh come on, everyone can dance," He pulled her up, placing her hand on his shoulder, and his hand on her back, "Just, follow me." She tried, clumsily at first, but slowly, surely, picking up the steps. They smiled at each other, Lee sang into her ear,_

_**There may be trouble ahead,**_

_**But while there's moonlight, and music, and love, and romance,**_

_**Let's face the music, **_

_**And dance!**_

_Marie laid her head against his chest; she could have stayed like that forever._

_**There may be teardrops to shed,**_

_**So while there's moonlight, and music, and love, and romance,**_

_**Let's face the music, **_

_**And dance.**_


End file.
